The Glitch Paradox
by thesixthcourier
Summary: Glitch, former Courier Six, struggles to find herself in the Mojave after a gunshot wound to the head. As she searches for her assailant, her life begins making turns she never even thought possible.
1. Chapter 1

My name is Glitch. Well, not really, but that's what they called me back in the NCR, so I stuck with it. The one talent I had in life was hacking computers. I could probably do it better than eating or sleeping. That, and breaking backs. I was really good at punching things to death with my bare hands. Most men and women were amazed at the amount of weight I could carry around. Daddy used to say it was a gift. I'm not sure why, it wasn't like I'd need to haul men, women, or brahmin across the Mojave. Maybe it was from helping him out so much when I was younger. He was a single father of two rowdy kids, a boy, and me, the girl. Although I'm sure he wished I'd be more girly. In fact, I knew he did because there were several occasions where he'd tell me I wasn't being very ladylike, or he would tell me that girls can't fight with dresses on. He was a sexist old bastard, raised in his ways, but I loved him nonetheless.

I joined the NCR when I was 16. The year my dad died. You see, I grew up in the Hub in California. It was always hotter than ass and sucked, but Dad made it work for my brother and I. He didn't eat unless we did, he didn't sleep until we did. I felt like it was my fault, him being a single dad. Mom died during childbirth with me. I guess the doctors said it was me or her, and in her dying breath, she said to save me. How dad didn't resent me, I'll never know. Maybe he did and just didn't tell me. Either way, he would work his hands to the bone as a repairman. Always fixing armor and weapons, always having strange men and women come in and out of the house. He loved his job, and he told us to make sure we loved what we did, too. They year he died, he wasn't much older than his late forties. Heart problems, the doctors said.

I was 16, and my brother 17. We joined the NCR thinking they'd keep us together. Instead, they immediately shipped me out to the Mojave as soon as they found out my skills with computers. Some big wig named Robert House ran a casino, and they thought he was being untruthful about something. Turns out, this dude is the owner of the entire fucking Strip. He doesn't own one casino, but all four of them, the other three run by what he calls "The Families" - rehabilitated tribals. Turns out, this Robert House fellow is old. Old as balls. Like, Old World old. That's all I could find out before he threw me out of his systems the first time.

It's been four years since the First Battle of Hoover Dam, and seven since I left home and joined the army. It's been three since I left the NCR, and seven since I've seen my brother. I'm not sure where he went or what he was doing, but my letters had all fallen on deaf ears. If I was lucky, I received a letter back that said "never heard of him. Sorry." Maybe he was moved somewhere else? I'm not sure. I wanted to see him again, since he'd the only family I had left. We used to get along so well, too.

Since I left the army, I picked up a job at the Mojave Express as a courier. My most recent job had me labeled as Courier Six, delivering a platinum poker chip. It also dug me a hole in the ground and put a bullet in my head. There was something about the guy who shot me, though. He was very clean cut. Almost too clean cut to be living in this dusty hole of a place. Which made me think maybe he was from Vegas. I was in the process of tracking him down.

I woke up in this small town called Goodsprings, on October 18th. The doctor, Doc Mitchell, said I was out cold since the 11th. Bullet in the head, miracle I survived. He had to shave the side of my head to get the bullet out. He hoped I wasn't angry.

I really couldn't be, since my hair was always thick and often got in my eyes. But it was a pretty rust color, brownish reddish, same as my brother's and mom's. Hair grows back, brains don't. Simple as that. I said thanks, offered to pay him, and when he said no, the robot in town gave him the caps to do it, I asked to talk to the robot. Said his name was Victor. He strolled about town for the last seven or so years, a cowboy face on a monitor. A securitron model 2060-B, if I remember correctly from House's files. Very strange looking thing, but whatever. He paid for my surgery when he didn't need to. When I asked him about my attackers, he said he didn't know much since he rushed to get me to Doc Mitchell's before I bled out. The only thing he knew was that it was a fella in a nice suit and a couple of Great Khans.

Later on that night, I somehow got myself into a fight with some Powder Gangers, helping to protect this guy that picked Goodsprings as his hiding place. After we won, Trudy, the town mom, gave us a round for free, and Ringo, the guy who was hiding, gave me some caps and we played caravan well into the night. She came by our table to say that my attackers were talking about going to The Strip but wanted to avoid I-15. And if they wanted to do that, they were going to have to go the long way around. For now, she suggested I head to Primm.

So the next day, I was off towards Primm, a town with a giant rollercoaster, a couple miles away from Goodsprings to get some information from my employers at the Mojave Express about my delivery. Of course, when I got there, they knew nothing about it, other than there were six of us, and we were all carrying decoy packages, except for me of course. Johnson said that the whole deal was fishy, but a robot like Victor offered them more money than they could turn down. There was another Courier Six originally, but they said he saw my name and said that I should take it. "Like the Mojave'd sort me out," Johnson quoted.

The only problem with the information about my attacker was that Deputy Beagle was the only one who saw them. And of course, the deputy was taken hostage by Powder Gangers in the old Bison Steve. Which meant that if I wanted info from him, I'd have to get him. But first, Johnson and Ruby said I could rest up at their place and take what I needed. So I did. They didn't have much, except some water in the fridge, a comic book, and an old robot that was broke. Didn't take much to get him fixed up though. Just soldered a few wires, fixed his plates and he was good as new. The license plate on the side said his name was ED-E.

Deputy Beagle was a giant sissy. He ran out as soon as I untied him and left me to deal with his captors. ED-E shot lasers before I even reached anyone to break their necks or cut their throats, which was pretty cool. At least Deputy Beagle gave me his notebook which contained all his notes on my attacker. A guy in a checkered suit heading to Novac. Okay. I checked the map on my Pip-Boy just as Johnson approached me. "Bring law to Primm," he said, "Deputy Beagle's a pussy." So I reprogrammed Primm Slim. Fuck looking around the NCRCF or asking around the NCR, I am a busy woman and I am not running errands for everyone who asks. And besides, I didn't leave the NCR on necessarily good terms (although I was honorably discharged) and I kinda killed some Powder Gangers, soooo there's that.

Either way, I ended up at Nipton eventually, since that's the route my Pip-Boy led me on. From about a mile away, I could see heavy smoke billowing through the thick heat of the desert, the flames were high enough to make the night sky bright. The smell of burnt hair and flesh was overwhelming, making me retch before I got there. ED-E made a worried beeping noise before launching into his war cry he played when he spotted enemies. He level a fiend before she got near us and he blasted a triumphant tune, signalling the end of battle.

Once I got into Nipton, I realized that I wouldn't need to buy supplies simply because I _couldn't._ Everyone was dead. Except for the Legion, who stood around looking victorious. Everyone was dead around them, and they just stood looking smug. Bastards. I tried leaving, but it was too late - I was spotted. A man in goggles and a dog hat motioned me to come towards him, and for a second I thought about fleeing. I thought about just running as fast as I could. But there were too many of them and they had dogs. I'd be tracked down and brought back by gnashing teeth, so I went towards him.

"What's your name, degenerate?" He asked in a voice that was so smooth and calculating that I wanted to have sex with it. Not him, just his voice.

I cleared my throat, "Glitch."

"Glitch?" He cocked a half smile, "interesting name. It's not your real one, is it?" I shook my head at him. "I figured not. Do you like what you see here?" I shook my head again. "How does it make you feel?" He asked, circling around me. His slim fingers danced through what was left of my hair and it sent a shiver down my spine.  
"You scare me," I said honestly.

"I should," his lips brushed my ear as he whispered.

I was never really good at words. Never knew how to let someone know how I felt, could never speak in code. I wasn't any good at convincing people unless I threatened them, and I was certainly good at threatening. If someone didn't believe how strong I was, I would simply demonstrate it for them, and they'd immediately listened. But there was something about this guy - the one with the weird fucking dog on his head and goggles covering his face - that I couldn't help but like. His voice made my knees weak. I didn't like what he was doing to me.

"I want you to go around and tell everyone what you saw here. Tell them it was Caesar's Legion. Strike fear into their hearts."

"Why did you do this?"

"Why not?" He asked, "I'll tell you why. Its because I wanted to teach these pathetic beings a lesson. They sold themselves to Powder Gangers, NCR, Legion men such as myself. And for what? Chems? Caps? Disgusting. The whole lot of them."

"How'd you wipe out an entire town?"

His face contorted with how big his smirk was, "we gave everyone a lottery ticket. When their number was called, we decided their fate."

"But there were more of them than you."

"You're right about that. And not a single one tried to stop us. When their loved one's tickets were called, they simply sighed in relief that it wasn't them."

"You're not serious..." The thought that someone would do that was sickening. Both executing people and not sticking up for their families.

"I am," he leaned down towards me, the scent of sweat and two hundred year old soap surrounded me, "you wouldn't do that, would you?"

"N-no," inside, I sighed at myself for being so stupid. Stuttering? Is that what I've come to?

"Of course not, profligate. Why are you here, if I may ask?"

"Going to Novac."

"What's there?"

"Information about the man who shot me," I pointed up towards the stitches on the side of my head.

"Why would someone shoot a beautiful creature such as yourself?"

"I...was carrying a package."

"Really? Has this man no decency? You aren't supposed to just shoot couriers and steal their packages. If he was on Caesar's routes, we would've skinned him alive."

"Yeah. So. I should...I should really get going, I guess."

"Why the rush? Stay awhile."

My mouth was dry and I couldn't talk. I was afraid if I said no, I'd be chased. But the thing is, _I didn't want to say no._ I wanted him to touch me again. Just my hair or my face, I didn't care what he put his hands on, as long as he kept making my knees weak and my heart pound. It was such an incredible feeling.

"I never got your name," I said as we went inside the town hall.

"Vulpes. Vulpes Inculta. Leader of the Frumentarii."

"Oh. Sounds exciting." I've heard that name before, though. He was one of the most brutal assassins in Caesar's Legion.

"You're right," he pushed me against the wall once we were inside, "who sent you?" He asked.

"No one."

"Who?!" He was tightening his grip on my shoulder, and his arm was cutting off the air flow to my lungs as he held it tight on my throat.

"Dude, seriously. No one."

"I can kill you right here," he whispered against my lips, "no one would know."

"You're not wrong about that."

He kissed me, hard, biting on my lower lip and pushing his hard on into my side. My hair was balled in his fist, and he pulled back on it, exposing my neck. His teeth just barely scraped against the flesh, leaving shivers down my spine, making me want more and more. But he pushed away.

"You're very tempting, profligate. But I will not let my body be sullied by you."

"You know you want it," I said, rubbing my hand up and down the budge in the fabric of his pants. He sighed and nodded, but then shook his head.

"No. It's not a good time. If ever we have a run in in the future, I'd love to."

"Okay. So I can leave?"

"You may."

Before exiting the building, I pulled my shirt up and let him see what he was missing out on. I didn't stay long enough to see his reaction. Next stop: Novac.


	2. Chapter 2

**October 20th 2281**

By the time I reached Novac, the sun had begun it's ascent, warming the areas it hit with it's long, bright tendrils. There was a woman wearing a green dress and large glasses heading towards the building in front of the motel. Just as I was nearing the door, I saw a movement out if the corner of my eye. Along with it came a groaning sound, and then the smell of oil.

"Howdy Pardner! Might I say you're looking fit as a fiddle!" Victor wheeled up to me.

"Hey, Victor. How did you know I'd be out here?"

"I didn't. I was just making my way back to Vegas. Don't known why, but I just got the strangest urge to."

"Really? Come here," I said, meeting him halfway and pressing a button under his monitor. The cowboy face disappeared, a keyboard popped out, and as I typed some stuff in, Victor's coding started scrolling across the screen. Robert House was remote controlling him. I wondered if Victor being there was no accident.

I put the keyboard away and Victor reappeared on the screen, "good golly, what happened, pardner?" At least I got outta there before House could turn him hostile.

"I was just checking your circuiting." ED-E beeped in agreement behind me.

"Well, I sure hope everything's okay, Ms. Glitch."

"Perfect."

"Okey dokey ma'am, see ya around!" And he wheeled off into the sunrise, sputtering and clanking. I kinda felt bad for not checking on him and just using him to spy on House. He looked and smelled like he needed a tune up at least.

Either way, I entered the lobby where the green dress entered a few minutes before. She smiled at me, and her eyes darted down before she made a half a second of eye contact. Whatever. Some people just aren't people persons.

"Hi, I'm Glitch. Just passing through. Wondered if I can get a room for the day."

"Sure thing, dear! In fact, 100 caps will let you keep it til the busy season if you'd like."

"I'd like," I said, plopping down a portioned baggie of 100 caps in front of her. She slid the key to me and told me it was the top floor closest to the lobby and began fiddling with papers. Still no eye contact.

"So, you probably see a lot working at a motel lobby. What about a couple of Great Khans and a guy in a fancy checkered suit?"

"Oh. Uhm, they came through a few days ago and talked to the sniper in the dinosaur mouth, Manny. I think he used to run with the Khans. You'll have to ask him."

Shrugging, I thanked her and ventured to my room. I was tired and sunburnt and my feet hurt and I was just all around miserable. It took me maybe ten seconds to fall asleep after my head hit the pillow.

I couldn't have been asleep too long because I was awoken by the sound of pounding at my door, and the sun filtered harshly through the thin, old drapes that were amazingly still on the windows. I yelled a "hold on" and started pulling on my shirt and pants. Who could even know I was here? I only checked in... I checked my Pip-Boy five hours ago. It's only noon.

I answered the door, and a tall, gangly, pale man in a dark business suit stood, leaning against the door frame. The suit complimented his pale hair and skin nicely, making his ice blue eyes seem even brighter in the high noon sun.

"Is this a miss Glitch?" He asked. I cocked my head to the side. He sounded familiar...

"Yeah. That's me. What's up?"

His cheek bones were high and accented the curve of his lips nicely, even when he cocked a smirk at me.

"My name is the Fantastic Mr. Fox, and I'd like to take you on a date."

"Oh. Well. Oh geez. I wasn't expecting that. Can I get ready first?"

"Sure. Take all the time in the world, my lady."

ED-E beeped warily at me, but I shooed him away.

I invited Mr. Fox in, and he plopped down on the couch, picking up the book on the end table. He flipped halfway through the book and started reading a poem out loud. Something about a raven. I couldn't hear too well over the sound of the semi clean bathwater running. It sounded beautiful. And it didn't hurt that he had such a nice voice, too.

I was careful of my stitches as I washed my hair, wincing anytime the two hundred year old soap would get into the cut. It needed washed, but I certainly didn't feel like dealing with pain. I was a big sissy when it came to pain. How I survived a gunshot to the head, I'll never know. I never saw any action in the NCR, although I did have to go through basic training. To sit behind a computer. It didn't make sense, but I did it anyway.

I rooted through the old closets and drawers, finding a dress that was a smidgen too small (although I was skinny as it was) but I managed to squeeze into it, and it even had a matching sun hat. Goddamn was I fucking cute or what.

His mouth hung open, "I don't know what to say. You're gorgeous."

"Thanks," I could feel my cheeks redden. To get some extra room in the dress, I had to push my boobs out further than I would've liked. I was never one for letting my cleavage show. But it was a beautiful lavender purple with small black flowers that cut off at my knees and had thin straps that held the dress on my shoulders. The sun hat was lavender with a big black bow on the side.

This is so ridiculous. I don't even know this man. The dress was so tight it was like a second skin, when I was used to wearing the NCR gear, minus the bear logo. It was loose, but not too loose, and it protected me from the sun.

"Are you ready?" He asked, not looking up from his book, after I stood there, staring at him for a few minutes. I nodded, the sun hat flopping around. My cheeks reddened again when I hooked my arm into his outstretched arm, and we were off.

He led us out of Novac, through the "front gate" in front of the dinosaur, and to the mountains. Once there, he helped me climb up a little bit, and after we took a sharp turn around the rock face, there was a giant, open mouth. As we went in, it got darker, but the cave fungus made it glow an eerie blue, until we reached the main area. There was a small pond, gently trickling down into a large river below us. There were candles lit, and a picnic bench in the middle with a fire off to the side. The table was adorned with all sorts of rich meats and cheeses and wines that I've never even heard of.

"Oh, wow, this is beautiful," I breathed.

"You're beautiful. Go have a seat and I'll be right over." I could almost hear the blush in his voice and I smiled - I felt like guys never got mushy over stuff like this. But it seems I was wrong.

I could feel his eyes on me as I walked over to the table and took a seat. It was hard in such a tight dress, but I managed, albeit a bit awkwardly. Once he returned, he poured wine into a fancy glass and sat down across from me. The meat was the thickest cut I've ever seen before, and he served it on the most beautiful set of dishes I'd ever seen. It was amazing. I had never tasted anything like it. And although I may have looked like a lady, I certainly wasn't eating like one. I was shoveling bite after bite in my mouth while still not getting it on my dress (thankfully.) It was a trick I learned in the army. They never gave us enough time to eat, so most of the time we'd be ordered back to our barracks with our plates half full still. Some of the other soldiers would try to sneak it past them, and they'd end up doing jumping jacks or something else just as absurd into the night.

"So, tell me about yourself," he smiled, his white teeth matching his white skin.

"Oh, me? I'm not really that exciting. My mom died in childbirth with me. Somehow my dad still loved me. Uh, hmm..what else? My dad died when I was 16, my brother was 17. We joined the NCR and got separated. I haven't seen him since. I left the NCR a few years back, picked up a courier job. Haven't really stayed in one place too long. Haven't really wanted to. Uh, that's...pretty much it, I think. Yeah."

"And you say you're not interesting?"

"Well, I don't know. Doesn't seem very interesting to me. What about you?"

"When I was young, my tribe was conquered. I was adopted by a widowed older man who had adopted a bunch of other younger boys and girls. He taught us many different languages and how to fight. Although he's sick now, and he won't let any of us close to him. It's frustrating."

"Oh. Well that's cooler than my story," I said honestly around a mouthful of cheese, "what do you think is wrong with him?"

He shrugged, "I'm not sure, honestly. Headaches? Seems too extreme for just a migraine, though. Anyways, you said you haven't seen your brother in years? Do you know where he was stationed?"

"First Recon back in California. All of my letters keep getting sent back though. I think he died in action. I'm gonna make a trip back home soon and see if anything is there."

"Where are you from?"

"The Hub."

"Oh, really? What's it like out there?"

"Hot, humid and covered in old, broken down cars."

He laughed, "you have that down to a point."

"People always ask, so I figured I'd just kinda find a concise way to explain it, Mr. Fox."

"Please, just call me Fox. My first name is Felix, but all of my friends refer to me as The Fox, or just Fox."

"Felix? That's a nice name. What do you do for a living?"

"I'm a business owner. I have a few casinos I'm opening up northwest of here and I've been trying to recruit girls for waiting tables and escorting."

"Oh, so this isn't a date?" My heart sank.

"Oh, no Miss Glitch. It is. I'm not recruiting you for anything. I'm just trying to get to know you."

"Why? I'm so...boring."

"What did you do in the NCR?"

"Intel officer. Nothing major, no big promotions or anything like that."

"Why'd you leave?"

"Honorably discharged." He raised his eyebrows while he awaited an explanation, "I'd rather not talk about it..."

"Did someone hurt you?"

"So what kind of casino are you looking to open?" I quickly changed the subject.

"Oh. Uhm, kinda like The Tops, if you've ever been there." I hadn't been, so I shook my head, "well, it's gonna have a hotel, casino, and maybe a place for acts to come up on stage. I'm not sure. I just got clearance for the building a few days ago."

"Oh, that sounds lovely!" I said as he poured me another glass of wine. And it went on like this, until the sun began to set and he escorted me back to my hotel room before all sorts of weird people and things crawled out of their holes. We talked about his large family, and how many different languages they knew since they were all tribals from different tribes. We talked about The Hub and the larger parts of California. Caesar's Legion made it's way into our conversation once or twice, and he said he hoped he never saw those goons near me. I told him how I hacked into Mr. House's computers and he found that more fascinating than anyone else did.

Once back at my room, I leaned against the door and he towered over me against the door frame. When I stood at five foot three, he stood at probably six foot three. So, when his departure came, and I asked when I'd see him again, he placed the most delicate kiss on my lips and said I'd never have to look for him, because he'd always be around. And just like that, he was gone.

As I slid the dress off, I was finally allowed to breathe again. I almost didn't want to put clothing back on, but I figured if I was gonna talk to the sniper out front, I probably had to at least look decent. So I threw on the NCR bandolier armor that I had from over the years (it didn't have the NCR logo on it, though, so I looked like I was just wearing a brown burlap sack,) my boots, my Pip-Boy and my glasses. I didn't need them normally, unless I was sitting at a computer, but they made me look smarter, so I liked wearing them. I ran my fingers through the unshaven side of my head and glanced at my Pip-Boy. It was 21:49 - I hoped Manny was still there.

Cliff left his shop unlocked so Manny could get in and out. And he had to have been very trusting because even the homeless settlers knew it was unlocked and they didn't they to steal anything...at least according to him. I, of course, ran back to his house to make sure he knew his shop was unlocked and he nodded and smiled like I hadn't interrupted his sleep or masturbation or something.

So I walked back up the stairs, through Cliff's shop, and stood atop another set of stairs behind a closed door. I contemplated knocking for a second, or just bursting through. Maybe if I burst through it would seem like I wanted my answers faster. If I knocked it would be more polite. I really don't know what I should do...

"I can hear you," came a monotone voice from the other side of the door, "just go back home."

"Wait," I said quickly, turning the knob. There was a rifle pointed directly in between my eyes, and I immediately stopped breathing, like that puff of air would set off his trigger finger. I couldn't see much past that. "I'm just here to get some answers."

"There's a fucking gun in your face. I don't have answers for you. Now leave."

"I...please. This means a lot to me," I said, pushing on the door a little harder until he stepped out from behind it and I stumbled awkwardly in front of him.

"Thank you. Jeannie May said I could meet you here," I said, brushing myself off. When I looked up, though, it wasn't Manny. I didn't know a Manny. But I knew the man in front of me. He might've been a little taller and a lot more muscular since last we met, but it was him. And his voice was certainly deeper.

"Jesus Christ," I breathed, "Craig?"

"Vega?"


	3. Chapter 3

"Holy shit! Craig! I...can't believe that's actually you!" I was in tears - this was _my brother!_

"Wow. I don't know what to say." _That's not surprising. You almost never know what to say, if I remember correctly._

I latched onto him in one of those big bear hugs he used to give me when we were younger, "I can't fucking believe this...dude, what have you been up to?"

"Nothing."

Oh. "You still in the army?" I pointed to his beret.

"No. You?"

"No. So is this where you live?"

"Yeah."

"You're even less talkative than I remember."

"Yeah. Well. You better be going."

My jaw dropped, my eyes widened, I stared at him while he watched out of the dinosaurs mouth. He didn't say anything else or even try to look at me.

"Craig. I haven't seen you in years, I can't just leave now. I have so much I wanna tell you about."

"Vega-"

"Call me Glitch. I left behind the name Vega years ago."

"I've got bad things coming to me. And those bad things will get you, too. It's best to just...stay away."

"No, Craig. I'm not doing that. Not after six years. No," I said, plopping down in the chair beside him. He sighed.

"You wanna help me do something?"

"What?"

"Look for the person who sold my wife."

_ Wow. Now this was news. My brother went out and got himself a wife, left the army and settled down. I didn't think Craig word leave the army for anything._

"Oh. Sold?"

"Yeah. To the Legion."

I felt my blood turn hot. Someone sold an innocent woman to the Legion? I nodded, "I'll help. What do I have to do?"

"My wife is dead. I just need you to find out who sold her. It had to have been somebody here - they knew what route to take so I wouldn't see them from here. They only took Carla, and they took her at night, while I wasn't home."

"So it had to have been a long time resident."

"Yeah. Like Cliff, Manny, Jeannie May, Ranger Andy, No Bark, even the doctor that's been roaming with the caravan."

"Okay. and when I find them, then what?"

His lips pursed in thought, and he reached up and gave me his beret, "put this on in front of the dinosaur. I'll know you're with the suspect, and that's when I'll shoot em."

"Oh. Okay."

I didn't have the jawline my brother did, and with his head shaved, no one could tell we had the same hair color, especially because, like dad, his stubble was a different color than his hair. And he was graying already. At the ripe age of 23. Our eyes might've been the same color, if his hadn't turned hazel over the years and mine hadn't been green. Our eye shape was the same, round, but with sharp angles - like someone pinched the corners and they stuck like that.

I knocked at one of the three houses standing in a row there, and a tall black man in sleeping clothes stepped out. From behind him, I could see that he had an old Ranger uniform hanging up on a door. This must be Ranger Andy.

"Uhm, hi. I just had a, uh few questions about Craig's wife."

"Carla Boone?"

"Yeah. What can you tell me?"

"She was nice. Boone loved her. You could tell - he would always walk around with this big goofy grin on his face when he was with her."

"Do you have any idea why someone would try to get rid of her?"

"What? Get rid of... Do you mean someone...killed her?"

"Oh, uh. Well, I don't know, really. That's what I'm thinking." Craig did say she was dead. "I'm not sure. I'm new here, just trying to help out."

"She didn't like Novac. That's the only thing I have bad to say about her. I didn't know her, other than she made Boone happy and she didn't like Novac. Shame to hear that someone mighta did her in. I hope that's not true."

"Me too. Thanks. Sorry for waking you up."

"No problem, kid. Sorry for not being a bigger help," and he closed the door with a sad look on his face.

I knocked on the next door, being Cliff's. He answered after a second and greeted me cheerfully enough again.

"Did you know anything about Carla Boone?" I asked.

"She always had a sour look on her face when they came in. Like my store smelled funny. It didn't though. She didn't seem to like Novac too much, but she wasn't a bad person. And then all of a sudden, she went missing. Poor Boone has been in the dumps ever since."

"You don't have any idea why she would leave or what happened to her?"

"No. I don't think she would've left Boone. But I also don't think she had done anything worth hurting her over."

I sighed, and ED-E made a sighing noise as well, "sorry for waking you up. Thanks for answering my questions."

"You're welcome."

In all honesty, I couldn't get near No Bark without him shouting something about naked mole men. I doubted it was him, just because he didn't seem mentally capable of carrying out a conversation with the Legion long enough to confirm a sale, and then actually deliver her or whatever. Either way, I ruled him out.

Jeannie May was just getting ready to leave the lobby for the night and I stopped her to ask about Carla. As soon as I said her name, she shook her head.

"We'll talk about her later, dear." Was her response.

"I'd like to talk about her now."

"Well, I'd rather not."

I stuck my arm out in front of her so she couldn't go anywhere else, "you know that man up in the dinosaur right now? He's my brother. And his wife was sold to the Legion. He thinks it was an insider because they knew to take Carla when he wasn't home, but they made sure to steer clear of the dinosaur's mouth. All I need are some answers, and if you're innocent, that'll be easy, right?"

"Oh dear. You can't mean...well, certainly, you don't think it was me?"

"Oh dear," I mocked, "you can't certainly sound any guiltier."

Her face scrunched up like she was sucking on one of those sour gum drops. I think she was just pissed off though.

"I will no longer discuss this with you," she stomped away.

"No, no, no," I said, catching up, "that isn't how this works. You're done when I say you are."

I blocked her again by the wall, and she stood still, cautiously eyeing ED-E and I. All I wanted was some answers, Craig however, wanted more than that. If she was the one who sold her.

"Now, Carla: tell me about her."

"She was...like a cactus flower. Pretty to look at, but you could never get close. She never liked Novac. Her nose was always in the air, and if she had something better than you, you better believe she would've made it known. She was always better. Ran back off to Vegas, that's all."

"She ran back off to Vegas," I repeated slowly, "and you're the only one she told?"

"Oh, well, no. It's not that she told anyone, per se, I just kinda, well, you know."

"Assumed?"

"Yeah."

"Okay. So you don't have any idea who sold Carla to the Legion?"

"Wait. What? Sold Carla to..."

"The Legion," I finished for her.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about," she swallowed hard.

"Okay," I shrugged. I'll just go back later. If she wasn't going to answer me now, I would just search the lobby while she was in bed and search her house while she was at work, then coax her out when I had my information. Or I could just take her by force now. Yeah. Seemed good.

"Let's go back to the lobby," I said, grabbing her wrist.

"What?" She pulled back, but I didn't budge.

"Do you have a receipt of sale at the lobby? Is it in your house? I know they document everything. Where is it?"

"What...what do you mean? How could you..."

"Know?" I finished again, "because it's simple. I've seen the Legion do all sorts of crazy shit. They always leave behind a bill of sale when buying slaves. I've seen them do it at New Reno, I've seen receipts all over the place at the Gomorrah, and I've found receipts in little towns like this one, where little jealous people solve their petty problems by giving someone away for caps. Do you know what that makes you? Nothing. It makes you less than nothing. You sold a human life for caps. Not just one, because now my brother has been so upset, he's probably suicidal over it. What? Are you upset you didn't get the caps for him, too? I'd punch you right in the fucking face, but I don't wanna maim you too bad before I get my info."

"Why are you doing this to me?"

"Craig probably asked himself the same question."

Grabbing her hips, I threw her up over my shoulder and began walking towards the lobby. First, we'll look here, and if it isn't here, then we'll just check her house. And if she tries to run, well, I don't think Craig will mind too much if I had to stop her...right?

I held her purse in one hand and her in the other, which made getting her keys out kinda difficult, but I managed. Once inside, I dumped her ass on the couch and pushed the filing cabinet down in front of the door. No one gets in, no one gets out.

I checked the desk, the filing cabinet I knocked over, the one I didn't knock over, the tables on the other side of the room, I looked through her guest logs on her computer and her journal entries, which mentioned a safe under the desk.

Shining my Pip-Boy light under her desk, I found the safe. It took me a few different keys on her ring to finally get it open, but I did, and for some reason, there was a coffee mug and some Old World money left inside. And a few neatly folded papers shoved off to the side. I took her 130 caps before reading some of the papers.

...Carla Boone for one thousand caps... And her unborn for five hundred...

"She was PREGNANT?!" My voice boomed towards her, and she looked startled, "fucking Christ, please tell me this isn't true. She wasn't pregnant. Tell me that, right now."

"Uhm, I...I..."

"So my brother lost his wife and his child. For a mere 1500 caps?! That's it?! If you wanted 1500 caps so fucking bad, I could've lent them to you! Jesus H Christ! Why would you do this to someone?"

"I wasn't doing it to Boone. I was doing it to Carla."

"And you thought that Craig was just gonna be okay after that?!"

I didn't wait for her response. Just picked her back up and moved the filing cabinet out of the way. I began the short walk to the front of the dinosaur that seemed to take much too long and I threw on the beret before setting Jeannie May down beside me. Craig had blown her head clean off before I even leaned back up.

I wanted to cry. Did I know Carla? No. Was she a bitch? It sounded like it. Did that mean she had to be sold to the Legion? No. No one deserved that. So I made the trek back up the dinosaur with a heavy heart and balled fists. Craig stared at me expectantly.

"What?" I was quiet.

"My beret, please." I handed it to him and lit a cigarette. I didn't smoke much, except when I drank or was stressed. But then again, I drank an awful lot these days.

As he sat in the chair, I sat against the door. Lighting a cigarette as well, he took a long drag and placed the ashtray between us before flicking off the ash.

"I'm sorry, Craig."

"Me too, hun. Me too."

"Come with me." I said after a few minutes.

"I guess. I don't have much of a reason to stick around here. What happened to your head?"

"Well that's the thing - I'm on my way to finding out who shot me and why. I just gotta talk to Manny, see if he knows anything."

"Why would he?"

"Guess he used to run with the Khans, and the Khans were with the man who shot me."

He grunted in response and we sat there until the sun started rising. Occasionally, we told stories, but he was mostly quiet. I had tons of stories to tell him - about my trip to New Reno, about being a courier, about the mysterious Mr. Fox, about my time in the NCR and leaving the NCR.

"How do you know Carla is dead?" I was half asleep and drooling on myself.

"I just know."

"You said she was sold to Legion. So...you had to have found her. To know she was sold by Legion."

"We'll talk about this later," he shifted uncomfortably.

"You did it, didn't you?"

"Vega..."

"You killed her. That's how you know she's dead," I fell asleep almost right after the words escaped my mouth.

"Still too smart for your own good," he whispered as he picked me up and carried me to bed.

It felt normal. For the first time in six years, I had seen my brother, and he was back, and we were a family again.


	4. Chapter 4

I kicked off the blankets uncomfortably. It was too warm, I was sweating and...I didn't remember being in a bed, but there I was. I rolled over and saw that Craig had been half asleep on the couch, an empty bottle of scotch beside him. My Pip-Boy read that it was 13:02 which meant that it was time to go ask Manny some questions, get the show on the road if I wanted to make any progress.

I wet my head with cold water and tried to scrape the dried blood off my wound. It hurt, a lot more than I thought it would, especially when I picked up one of the many bottles of soap Craig had lined up on his bathtub and began scrubbing my entire head. I suspected they were Carla's - after all, I don't think my brother wanted to smell like Candied Apple or Passion Fruit. He also didn't have any hair, so there's that. I'd have to ask if he still used shampoo or if he just used soap. I had been using shampoo on both sides of my head, but the one was still covered in hair, so I didn't find it necessary to rinse it off and use normal soap, but that was me.

When I was done washing up, I exited the bathroom to see Craig sitting on the edge of the bed. When I asked him if he wanted to come with me to talk to Manny, he just shook his head. I left, not taking much with me - I was only going 100 feet away, I didn't think I'd need to actually bring a weapon.

Manny was taller than me and of Hispanic descent. Like Jeannie May said, he used to run with the Khans, but he wasn't giving me much more info than that until I cleared the ghouls out of REPCONN. I sighed loudly - I hadn't planned on doing that today. Maybe I could check out his room while he was working...

I went back down to Craig's room and started packing my stuff, explaining him the situation. He said he'd rather check his room than clear out REPCONN, but we'd do it if we had to. After making sure I didn't leave anything in my room, we went to Manny's room, right beside Craig's, and lo and behold, there were several mattresses on the floor with pillows and blankets still on them. They looked recently used, seeing as how no one cleared them away yet or bothered to pick up the blankets and pillows. In the corner, there was a glowing computer terminal, and I hoped some information on my shooter. Craig overturned the room looking for clues while I inserted my flash drive that had my hacking program on it. I tried four possible password choices - firstrecon, NCRsoldier, mannyvargas, and sergeantvargas - before I was finally allowed access.

He had a few journal entries, nothing too exciting or too incriminating, just the most recent one from two nights ago said he had some old friends over. The thing that pointed the most fingers was an email from some guy named Jessup. It didn't say much, just "do you mind if we crash at your place? It'll just be one night before we head back to Vegas with Benny. Might stop at Boulder City bar or the 188 for a few drinks. Lemme know soon as you can, man." So I set those two as destination points on my Pip-Boy map and told Craig to stop throwing the mattresses around.

"This is it. We probably won't be back for a while," I said, "you sure you have everything?"

He had the clothes in his back, an ammo belt, his weapons, and a duffle bag, which by the sound of it, was full of booze. His response was a simple nod, and like that, we were leaving, avoiding REPCONN entirely. I kinda felt bad. Manny didn't seem like a bad person, but he mentioned ghouls and nightkin and I'd rather avoid a fight if I have to, and usually, there's no talking to either.

"Did I tell you..." I started, not know where to, well, start. I haven't seen him since we were just teenagers, and he seemed like he changed so much when I stayed boring old me. The only thing I changed was my name and it wasn't even legally Glitch, I just didn't tell people my real name. Vega was the girl before the army - undisciplined, uncaring, feather brained Vega. Glitch was an entire different person, and I had no more room for Vega in my body. So, I guess I had changed, just how you'd expect someone in the army to change.

However, I think Craig liked to think of me as Vega still - the way he cautiously put his arm out in front of me or moved me behind him to protect me from danger. It was nice to be cared for, to be protected. Since we separated, I hadn't had anyone in my life like Craig, and the only person I can say I "loved" since then was a girl named Nova, and the only reason I "loved" her was because we slept together a few times. So I told Craig about Nova, and he didn't seem too surprised that I had a girlfriend (if you could call her that.) I also told him about how they wanted to promote me to the head of the intel branch but I said no because I just liked hacking computers. I wasn't good at speeches or planning, I just did what I was told...within reason. I didn't like people being huge douches about things, like ordering me around. A commanding officer being commanding was one thing, a comrade was another.

We were coming up on Boulder City now and I was really hoping that my shooters were still here, but I somehow doubted they were. They were always a step ahead; in Novac the night before me, and now, probably at the Strip, rolling in caps and laughing at the courier they stole a package from. My cheeks reddened with anger.

"Ma'am, I need you to...oh my god, Glitch! Imagine seeing you here!" Lieutenant Monroe stood before me with a look of disbelief on his face.

"Hey, Monroe. How's it hanging?"

"You know, a little to the left. I haven't seen you in forever! You never told me you quit the NCR."

"Uh, yeah. Sorry. It was...personal. Family issues, had to go back to California for a while."

"You chose the Mojave over Cali _again_?"

I shrugged. I wasn't good at talking, and I was especially bad at lying, but I never really told anyone why I left the NCR, and I didn't really have a reason to. It wasn't anyone's business but my own.

"Anyways, did you see some Great Khans around? A man in a checkered suit?" I asked.

"Uh, actually, we have a hostage situation right now with the Khans, inside the city."

"The Khans are hostages?"

"No, they took the hostages."

"Oh. Well, lemme go in there and kinda rough em up a bit, get the info I need, and I'll be outta your hair."

"I'm not supposed to let NCR through."

"Well it's a good thing I'm not in the NCR then, isn't it?"

He nodded, "I'll tell them not to shoot. I just hope you can get them outta there..."

Once inside, I noticed there were several troopers outside of the only building still standing. One on the roof, one in an old bus station, one lying on her stomach across the street, all aiming for the door. At least they were serious about the hostage situation. Didn't seem to be too worried when they trapped a bunch of NCR soldiers in here to kill half as many Legion. My guess was that it was probably because it was The Khans.

Craig entered first, with me following on his heels. When there seemed to be no imminent danger, he let me step out from behind him. There was a Khan behind the counter who's face turned ghostly white when he saw me.

"Holy shit. You're that courier Benny wasted back in Goodsprings."

"Yeah, I'm a ghost, coming to haunt you from beyond the grave. OoooOOOOoooh."

"Fucking cut it out, man."

Despite how upset I was, Craig and I let out a hearty laugh. "Where's the big man on campus that shot me?"

"That fuckin' rat stiffed us. Probably back at Vegas laughing at us."

My hand slapped my face and I rubbed my eyes, "you're fucking kidding me, right?" He shook his head. "Fuck. This is fucking bullshit!" I screamed, ripping the metal shelves away from the wall and smashing them off the counter until they were bent scrap metal, "fuck him! Fuck you! Fuck! Tell me one good reason I shouldn't fucking grind your bones to make my bread, bitch."

"Holy shit. I don't have a reason, I don't. The only thing I can give you is Benny's lighter. I swiped it off him 'cause it looked cool, I just-" I snatched the lighter out of his hand and flipped it open. An old zippo lighter. I flicked it on and caught his bandana on fire.

"You fucking helped kill me for CAPS. How much did he promise you?" I was wrapping my knuckles with tape as he ripped his bandana off frantically, "HOW MUCH?!"

"4000. But we only got 2000."

"2000?! You're telling me that you thought a human life was worth 2000?! First, I find out that my brother's pregnant wife was sold for 1500 caps, and now you guys _tried _and _unsuccessfully _killed me for 2000 caps?!"

"Well, it was supposed to be 4000-" _Crack! _I felt his nose shatter against my fist.

"Hey, that's enough," Craig chided, putting his hands on my heaving shoulders.

I tried steadying my breath while Craig set the man's nose. That was so...uncharacteristic of me. I was usually shy and quiet, never sticking my neck out, never poking or prodding too much (unless it was on a computer.) And I never got so angry that I just...couldn't control myself. Sure, I got angry, and sure, I would break stuff, but I didn't even listen to his story, I didn't let him get a word out edgewise.

"It wasn't personal, and I'm sorry," he said.

"I know. It doesn't change the fact that you tried to kill me. Do you know what it's like to wake up, two bullet wounds to the head and _wish _you were dead because it hurt so fucking bad? - Gimme a cigarette, will ya? - Do you know what it's like to have dirt and sand thrown on top of you while you lie there, pretending to be dead? I had no idea who you guys were, and I would've just given you the chip or the caps if you'd have asked. After a while of lying there, I passed out, probably from fuckin' blood loss or the fact that I _had two fucking bullets in my head. _But that doesn't matter, does it? What matters is that you guys did your part and didn't get your caps, isn't that right?"

"Look, we're really sorry-"

"Just let the hostages go, okay?"

They untied the hostages as I took a seat on the floor, the cigarette loosely hanging between my teeth. I watched as they let the girl go first, obviously sexually assaulted with her torn shirt and missing pants. I was biting hard on the filter of the cigarette, trying to stop my jaw from clenching and unclenching uncomfortably. No one deserves that. No one. After the let the boy go – his face a bit mangled from being hit one too many times – they turned expectantly towards me.

"What do you guys want from me?"

"We're sorry."

"You're sorry because you're afraid I'll do to you what I did to that shelf."

Craig let out a chuckle and they backed away from us, slowly.

"I'll go tell them to let you go. But I'm telling you what, you better kiss every baby you see, count every fucking star in the sky, thank everyone you know for all their hard work in this petty little lifetime we're all sharing, enjoy the shit out of life, because next time I see you, I'm gonna fucking punch your neck out of place, little man." And I left.

"I don't remember you being that scary when you're mad."

"Me neither," I shoved my hands deep in my pockets and looked down at the ground.

"Thanks for helping us out back there, Glitch. I have some bad news though. Brass says to take out the Khans hostages or not."

"Fuck Brass. They already took out the Khans once before. There's only two, and I roughed the one up enough. Just let em walk."

"But..I can't go against orders."

"What are you, fucking CO Withers?"

I could feel Craig stiffen beside me, and Monroe sighed, radioing inside to tell them to let the Khans go. Then he looked me dead in the eye and shook his head.

"You were in the intel branch, how do you know that name?" He asked.

"I was in the intel branch, like you said. Besides, you aren't in the intel branch and I knew you. Thanks, though," I said as I began walking away.

I didn't even make it past the monument when a tall man walked up to me, saying he had a delivery for Glitch. I took the package and tipped him well. The package was a note, and a gold coin on a string. Craig asked who it was from and shrugged. I didn't know and wouldn't find out til I read the note. Either way, I put the gold coin around my neck before opening the letter.

_ Glitch,_  
_Meet me at the 188 Trading Post under the bridge at about 01:00. I also bought you a present, I hope you like it._  
_-The Fantastic Mr. Fox._

Ugh, I could feel my heart melting all sappily. Craig didn't bother to ask again, so I just told him it was a guy I was seeing, and we left it at that. He wanted to meet at 01:00 at the 188 and it was getting dark now we would probably crash there tonight and head on out to the Strip tomorrow.

"So, uh, how to you know Withers?" Craig asked. I was surprised at his attempt to make conversation.

"I was in the NCR too."

"Yeah, but he was the Commanding Officer for First Recon, there's no way you would've run into him."

"Yeah, well I did."

"_How_, Vega? Just tell me how."

"Is it that important?"

"Yes."

"I hacked into his emails."

"Why?"

I shrugged.

"_Why?" _He sounded like he was getting upset with me

"I just did, okay? Does it fucking really matter?"

"Hacking emails has a lot of consequences unless you're ordered to do it."

"Sue me."

"I just don't know what the big deal is."

"ME NEITHER, CRAIG!" I yelled at him

"Fine. I don't care that much anyways," He said, looking away and walking ahead of me. This was how all of our fights used to go when we were younger; he'd yell at me, I'd yell back and he wouldn't talk to me for several hours afterwords. Which I did _not_ want after not seeing him for so long.

"I knew he was the CO at Bitter Springs, so I figured I'd do some digging and see what the communications error was all about," I said, finally.

"Did you find anything?"

I shrugged again.

"Vega, what did you find?"

"Just...that it was like everyone thought. No com error, just a racist dick who didn't like Khans."

"Why couldn't you just tell me that?"

"Because the last time I told someone that...well, they, uh...well, I was, uhm, almost raped..."


	5. Chapter 5

**October 21st 2277**

I knew telling Craig wasn't the best idea I've ever had. There was a couple of hours of silence that grew thicker and thicker until it was suffocating me, wrapping around my throat and tightening with every unspoken word. I coughed to get rid of the feeling, but it just grew stagnant. It started getting dark when Craig finally stopped walking and looked down at me. His lips parted like he was going to speak, but he didn't. His sunglasses blocked his eyes, but from the way he was standing, I assumed he was just staring at me. It was weird.

"I..." He finally spoke, "I was at Bitter Springs. He was my commanding officer."

"I'm sorry," I said, and I was. Through emails, I read about what happened at Bitter Springs. I knew it must've been bad for the NCR to cover it up like they did.

"No. Don't worry about me."

I shrugged - I was always worried about him. I was worried about myself, but I didn't have anyone to worry about me until Craig came back. After the NCR, I felt a crushing loneliness that didn't feel before. Like I was constantly fucking everything up and no one would want to be near me. I built up so much in the NCR with hacking House's computer, and then I destroyed it all with hacking emails. Not necessarily the hacking part. The part where I got the balls to confront Withers. Alone. In his office. It wasn't a very wise idea on my part. I did a lot of blaming myself in the beginning. Hell, I still do now. But I know it wasn't my fault - what he did. If someone wouldn't have walked in, it would've been worse. A lot worse. It didn't get to that point, thankfully. He had torn off my clothes, touched me, but he hadn't actually...raped me. He was getting ready to when a trooper walked in, saw us naked and the panic on my face.

I did a lot of blaming myself because I _could've_ fought him off, I _could've_ said more than no, I _could've_ beaten the living shit out of him - but, like in most cases I panicked. It wasn't like I ran out of the room screaming and crying, it was the kind of panic where I couldn't breathe and started folding in on myself; I crossed my arms, I stayed quiet, I shook and trembled. I did nothing to stop him, and that's my fault... Or at least I felt like it for a couple years.

Craig and I settled in at the bar and we both lit cigarettes and ordered a beer. It was kind of awkward, not talking. Not having noise. ED-E was silent, except for the light humming he made as he floated through the air. He did have the radio on earlier, but we made him shut it off as we neared the 188. I sipped slowly at my beer - I hated the taste of alcohol unless it was chased with something. Craig hadn't said much since we sat down, and I couldn't think of anything to say. We laid our caps on the bar and got another drink, and continued to sit in silence until the bartender walked up to us.

"So, how long have you guys been together?" He asked.

"Uh, since I was born," I said, "we're siblings."

"Oh! My mistake. You guys don't look a lot alike."

"Yeah, we get that a lot. You got somewhere to crash?"

"There are a few tents we can rent out for a few caps a night."

"Okay, sounds good. We'll be outta here bright and early in the morning."

"No worries. Stay as long as you want."

"Thanks," I said, continuing to sip on my drink.

"Vega?"

"Yeah?"

He huffed and blew a stream of smoke down at the bar. Even though I sat waiting for a response, it seemed to take him a while to form it in his head. "You okay?" _That's it? It took you five minutes to say that? _But I knew it was more than that – he wanted me to tell him everything. How I found him, how I felt, what I had done in the last few years.

"No. I'm not okay, but I'm working on it. I've been alone since I left the army, and no matter how many times I tried to find you, they returned my letters, and you're here in the Mojave," I stopped myself from slamming my fists on the bar.

"What happened to Nova?"

I shrugged, "We weren't dating per se, just...fucking."

He raised his eyebrows and nodded, "I'm glad you have more game than I do."

The bartender and I shared a laugh, "Well, she was bored, I was bored, and the next thing you know, I'm scissoring her on the bathroom floor."

"Well there's something I didn't plan on thinking about tonight."

After I finished my beer, I ordered a vodka and Nuka, chasing the two together and downing the drink in seconds. Producing more caps from my pocket, I ordered more and paid for a tent. The drinking seemed to numb the ever-ending ache in my legs and head – walking for about twelve hours with enough stops to take a piss and cook food were killing my knees and ankles. And, well, if I didn't have a bullet wound in my head, it would probably still be thumping.

"Hey, Craig. I'm gonna go take a nap. Can you wake me up at like half past midnight?" I asked.

"You got a hot date?"

"Yeah, I guess so." I didn't entirely know what to call it, since last time he just randomly showed up and took me into a mountain for a date. I guess underneath a bridge wouldn't surprise me too much, though it didn't seem nearly as romantic as the mouth of the cave with it's fire pit and candles. There were too many people around for something so sensual.

I spent my time before Fox showed up talking to a kid who called himself The Forecaster. He said some odd stuff, like about a girl in brown robes that I was going to make friends with, and he said my part in the Bull and the Bear fighting over the Dam was bigger than I thought. I tried several times to ask if he was okay with living under the bridge, but he said he made enough money to eat, and the people at the 188 protected him. I didn't like him being so alone. He was just a little kid.

"Good evening, love," a voice came from behind, and I knew it was Fox.

He held a bouquet of desert roses, bright pink with the thorns removed. I thanked him, and he gave me a quick peck on the cheek as we started walking away from the 188. The bright lights and laughter started disappearing, the desert night cool, quiet and very dark. The stars providing the most lighting, and even then, it wasn't enough.

He grabbed my hand, "you are wearing that necklace?"

"Yeah," I blushed.

"Okay. Good. My family is big, and I don't want them to try anything. So please, keep it on."

"What would they try?"

"I'm not sure."

"How big is your family?"

"Pretty big."

I nodded, "like...how many brothers and sisters do you have?"

"A lot. More than I can count."

My jaw dropped, "what? That's a lot of people... How does your dad keep track of all of them? My dad had a hard time with Craig and I."

He chuckled, "he does a good job. Just make sure you wear that coin. They'll leave you alone."

"What's your dad's name?"

"Edward."

"What do your other brothers and sisters do?"

"The women usually teach and preach, they do a lot of house work like seamstresses and watching over the kids. The men are scouts and weapon forgers, things like that."

So far, I didn't have a reason to _not _trust this man, but he also hadn't given me reason _to _trust him. It sounded suspicious - he didn't know how many siblings he had? I had one, I knew that. Was he just part of a big community that he considered his brothers? And how come all the women had soft, easy jobs? Raising kids and being a seamstress seemed boring to me.

"Hey, your uh, brother is watching us."

I turned to see Craig down at the bar, staring intently at the two of us. I shook my head, "he's just worried about me," I gave him a small wave, and he tipped his bottle towards me.

"So, how old are you?" He asked.

"22. How old are you?"

"24."

We sat on the rock above the 188 for a couple of hours. He asked about my family, and I asked about his. For some reason, I felt so comfortable with him. I didn't know him, and with him bring so...different, I thought it would be hard to open up. It wasn't, and I liked that about him.

Around 3:30, he finally got up and brushed the dust from his pants, helping me to stand up as well. He was so close, and I could smell him - his sweat, his hair, the soap he used - and I just wanted to touch him. But he brought his hand to my face, brushing away a stray piece of hair and grabbing the back of my head and neck, pulling me towards him. My breath caught in my throat as he placed his lips on mine and kissed me. It was so tender and loving, I felt my stomach floating away. I wanted more, but I didn't want to rush things.

"I'll see you soon," he said with a smile before leaving.

I don't know how, but he was right. He did always come back. Granted, it had only been a few times now, but I liked it.

After finding Craig and settling into the tent, we talked briefly about Withers, and where he was, what he was doing. Of course, I didn't know, but I had a way of finding out - through the NCR's computers.

"What do we do with the information of his whereabouts?" I asked.

"We find him. And we teach him a lesson, old Boone style."


End file.
